Something Fishy

One down-side to Hout Bay is the fishy smell that wafts in from the harbour from time to time! Today is a prime and rather ripe example. I wish that we weren't having fish for dinner 2nite!
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Water Worries and Wonders

Rob has been digging up what seems to be some concrete support in the garden.

On a slight detour and on his way to plant some agapanthas, Rob nudged the water supply in the garden and created a fountain. This was a bit dodgey as it must have been hit before and it was extremely shallow. So off went the water supply and in came Les the next day to help fix the problem. This was not too bad because all it needed was some elbow grease and the right part that only cost about R20. But it did mean that we were out of water for the main part of a day.

Setting up the water on the new Samsung fridge was a bit of a mission. There isn't a water pipe on the fridge side so Rob came up with a plan to plumb the water from the ceiling i.e. from the cold water pipe nest to the geyser. All the parts purchased, with the help of Les' planning, and Rob is ready to go. Here are some pics of the process:

The filter:

The tap:

Going into the ceiling:

Preparing the pipe:

Connecting an elbow:

Eureka! A fountain of filtered water! Can't wait for the ice!

Family House Warming Braai

We had the good fortune of having Glenn, Liz, Seppo, Momma, Les, Sandra, Aunt Alexis and Richard over for a family braai on 20 March 2010.

There was a lot of prep:

• Rob cut the grass in the back garden
• Kimi cleaned all the floors
• We went to Pick n Pay for major supplies! We realized that we only have 6 plates and 10 people coming!
• We got a gas braai from Seppo and then relised that the gas bottle did not attach. Luckily we borrowed his Weber!

It was all worth it in the end. We had a lovely time and Rob even opened his 12 year old bottle of wine that he received as player of the year award for all to enjoy. Cheers!

Week Two

Things not covered in week One

We did such a lot in week one that it was hard to remember what happened on what day. Rob has religiously watered the garden and pulled weeds. He also set up the water feature and fish pond (not to mention setting up the temporary salt water tank in the dining room).

This is a synopsis of week two. I think that, going forward, we shall just write as we go. This week by week report is a bit pedantic!

Summary of Week 2:

• Kimi and Rob played some cricket in the front garden (more to come, we are thinking swingball and bats).
• Rob did more weeding
• Kimi ironed some of the couch covers
• The couch was put together
• Rob cut the front lawn
• The laundry room was decarpeted and set up
• House of Dork, I mean York, ironing board was added to the laundry room. They clearly have poor quality control and Rob had to fix the problem

• The kitchen was cleaned (with help from Aunt Alexis and Momma) and set up
• We set up the extra closet that, Angie gave us years ago, in the bedroom

We have a few more things to blog to get back up to speed. Watch this space :-)

Have You Seen This Blender?

Our blender is missing! It never made it to the new house. Rob is trying to get hold of the movers in case they still have it in their truck It may also have made its way into Kimi's or Rob's parents houses by mistake as they were helping us store some of our small items.
Rob remembers handing it to the movers but I do recall them giving something back to me. It could have been the blender or something else..? Hopefully, it was not stolen!
We really miss our smoothie blender. It is a black and silver Breville blender with a large glass jug :-(

Hopefully it will turn up somewhere soon! If you have any information as to the whereabouts of our blender please contact kimi on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kimikeith Who knows, it might be lost and lonely on the streets somewhere!

Week One

Wow, what a week and tons of things done.
Day one, Friday:

• Kimi gets the keys to the castle (blogged). 
• The previous owners get a Malawian guy, Stanley, to clean. Well, the place is so filthy that he was only able to take off the top layer really.
• Bomb out the house with bug killer
• 'Sleep' in the granny flat - jumping at any sounds as we are paranoid that someone will break into the house.

Saturday:

• We wake up to the most awesome view from the granny flat.
• We check out how huge the attic really is
• Family comes over to clean a little and assess immediate needs.
• Kimi cleans the terrible dirt on the inside of the French doors and the bedroom cupboard
• Rob rips out the disgusting bedroom carpet. There is a whole load of dirt that came out of the carpet after it was vacuumed once already! Yuck!

Sunday:

• Sandra and Kimi cleaning while Rob and Les hang two double security gates (presents from Kimi's Momma and Daddoo).

Monday:

• Kimi has class. 
• Kimi and Rob fetch an angry yowling Church, unhappy to be leaving her Vredehoek home.

Tuesday:

• Rob has the whole day off, Kimi has a half day
• Boxes arrive. Where is the blender? 
• Good idea - only numbering the boxes and keeping a key of contents. Bad idea: losing that key months down the line!
• Rob sets up the dining room table
• The gorgeous new fridge arrives

Wednesday:

• Brunch at La Cuccina around the corner.
• Washing machine arrives
• Unpacking and sorting
• More cleaning

Thursday:

• Kimi has class
• Rob and Kimi have dinner on paper plates as they still do not know where the crockery (and cutlery) is

Keys of the Castle

Kimi has the keys to the Hout Bay Home. There were some surprises-good ones. There is another bathroom and single bedroom behind the garage that we did not know existed! There are 2 air conditioning units too! The ceiling in the main bedroom was fixed, there are half decent ceiling fans in 2 bedrooms and the owners left the clothes cupboard in the main bedroom for us! Cool cool! There is, of course, still loads to be done but it is @ least not too bad to start off with :-)
We will commence bombing the bugs tonight and will sleep in the granny flat with our mattresses from Momma and Seppo. Movers will be coming Tuesday afternoon!
Cheerio 4 now!
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Transfer has Gone Through

Our transfer came through today and we will get the keys to our Hout Bay home tomorrow morning! Thank you for all of your help and encouragement when times were tough and emotions were running high. We fought hard for this place (every step of the way for months) and we got it - but we could not have done it without you!

We are trying to get leave tomorrow and the movers in on Monday if possible. We will let you know how it goes and will take loads of pictures (as Kimi normally does anyway).

Hooray for the Hout Bay Home :-D

Love Kimi & Rob